Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2009-10: The Ottawa 67’s first pick (16th overall) in the 2009 OHL Priority Draft, Cody Ceci skated in 64 games as an OHL rookie and represented Ontario in the U17 World Hockey Challenge. He scored 4 goals with 8 assists and was plus-3 with 12 penalty minutes as Ottawa finished first in the East Division. In 12 OHL playoff games Ceci had 3 assists and was minus-1. He was scoreless in six games for Team Ontario at the WHC.

2010-11: Ceci was one of two players to skate in all 68 games for the Ottawa 67s and represented Canada at the 2011 U18 World Junior Championship. He scored 9 goals with 25 assists and was plus-11 with 28 penalty minutes. Ottawa finished first in the East Division but were swept by Sudbury in the first round of the playoffs. In four playoff games Ceci had 2 assists and was -5 with 4 penalty minutes. In seven games for Canada at the U18 WJC, he was plus-3 with 1 assist. Canada advanced to the bronze medal game, losing to Russia.

2011-12: Ceci was the OHL’s second-leading scorer amongst defensemen (60 points) and was also invited to the tryout camp for Canada’s U20 squad in his third OHL season. In 64 games he scored 17 goals with 43 assists and was +21 with 14 PMs. The Ottawa 67’s finished first in the East for the third straight season. In 18 playoff games he scored 2 goals with 13 assists and was plus-one. Ottawa advanced to the conference finals before falling to Niagara in five games. Ceci was ranked sixth amongst North American skaters in Central Scouting’s final rankings prior to the 2012 NHL Draft.

2012-13: Ceci signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Senators in August 2012 and made his pro hockey debut with Ottawa’s AHL affiliate in Binghamton in April 2013 following his fourth OHL season. He scored 1 goal with 1 assist and was +2 in three AHL regular season games. The Senators were second in the East Division and had the AHL’s fourth-best record before being swept by Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in a first round series. Ceci was -1 with no points nor penalties in three playoff games. His final season of junior hockey was challenging. A team captain for the Ottawa 67’s when the year started, he was traded to Owen Sound with the 67’s floundering in last place. In 69 games between the two teams he scored 11 goals with 29 assists and was -8 with 12 penalty minutes. Owen Sound finished second in the Midwest Division and reached the second round in the playoffs. Ceci scored 1 goal with 9 assists and was -8 in 12 playoff games.

Talent Analysis

Ceci has developed into a good defensive defeseman with some definite offensive skills, evidenced by the fact that he has played a prominent role on both the power-play and penalty-killing units for the Ottawa 67's. Ceci has the size to compete with the bigger players in the NHL, although he may not always use that size effectively. Ceci is a potentially complete package who could have a fair amount of upside to his game.

Future

Photo: Ottawa Senators defenseman Cody Ceci is tied for fourth in scoring by a defenseman at the 2016 IIHF World Championship, posting one goal and four assists in six games for the unbeaten Canadian squad (courtesy of Pavel Bednyakov/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

The next generation of Canadian defensemen.

That’s what they’re saying about the crop of defenders that have come out of the 2012 NHL Draft, and six of those are currently playing for Team Canada at the IIHF World Championship in Russia. Read more»

Photo: Forward Mark Stone has been a standout for the Ottawa Senators this season, with 11 goals and 14 assists through 43 NHL games. Stone is a sixth round pick from the 2010 NHL Draft. (courtesy of Minas Panagiotakis/Icon Sportswire)

The Ottawa Senators started the 2014-15 season well with a 4-1 run, but quickly began exhibiting more of the bad habits that put the team in a hole last year. But you can hardly blame them—they are now the fourth youngest team in the league. Call it growing pains.

Photo: Forward prospect Mark Stone began the 2014-15 season in the NHL with Ottawa. Stone was a sixth round pick from 2010. (courtesy of Andre Ringuette/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Ottawa Senators have one of the youngest groups of players currently playing in the NHL. They are the fourth youngest team, with an average age of 26, and have had numerous prospects make the jump to the NHL over the last few years, such as Mika Zibanejad, Patrick Wiercioch, and Robin Lehner.

The lack of a first round selection in the 2014 NHL Draft hurt the Ottawa Senators, but the arrival of two forward prospects via trade helped generate some excitement. Acquired from the Dallas Stars as part of a package deal for Jason Spezza, OHL forward Nicholas Paul is a player on the rise, poised for a breakout year in 2014-15. Fellow new arrival Alex Guptill, on the other hand, is looking to rebound back to elite form after a forgettable final season with the Michigan Wolverines.